UPDATED: Maltby signs one-year, two-way deal

DETROIT - Kirk Maltby joked as he walked into the Wings' locker room after an informal skate Wednesday morning at Joe Louis Arena, "I would have been here earlier, but I went to Troy first."

Maltby, though, has not lost his way. He and the organization have found a way to stay together for at least one more season.

Maltby, 37, signed a one-year, two-way contract with Detroit just after getting off the ice with many of his teammates as they prepare for training camp in Traverse City, which begins Sept. 16.

Maltby will make $525,000 if he plays in Detroit and $105,000 if he plays in Grand Rapids, which is where he'll more than likely start the season with the number of forwards the Wings have competing for spots going into camp.

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"I would have come down (Tuesday), but I don't think stuff was finished," Maltby said. "I think any player in the league, whether it's a 15-year veteran, a two-year veteran or a rookie, anyone would love to have a one-way contract.

"It's something I contemplated over," Maltby added. "Signing it doesn't mean anything either way. I wanted to at least get to camp and see how things go."

Wings general manager Ken Holland was clear last week that signing a player like Maltby, who has been with the Wings since 1996, to a one-way contract would all but keep the veteran in the minors if he were sent down.

On a one-way deal, if the Wings were to recall him he would have to clear re-entry waivers. If he was claimed by another team Detroit would have to pay half his salary, which would go towards the cap.

"I wasn't happy with having to finish last year short," said Maltby, who helped out the Wings last season by deciding to have season-ending shoulder surgery in early March which allowed the team to stay under the salary cap and not have to release someone on the roster. "I wanted to at least be able to train through the summer and get something done and get ready for Traverse City. I want to at least get to camp and see how things go."

Maltby's chances of making the Wings' roster out of camp are minimal since they added Mike Modano and got Jiri Hudler back from Russia.

Holland has said they will carry 14 forwards this season.

Mattias Ritola, who has a two-way deal, will more than likely make the team because the Wings don't want to risk placing him on waivers for fear of him being claimed. He also just signed a three-year extension in May.

Drew Miller could be the roster casualty. Miller is an unrestricted free agent after this season.

"Fortunately, I'm here," Maltby said. "Right now it's about Traverse City and exhibition games. I've played in the minors before."

Another reason why Maltby, who lives in Grosse Pointe, wanted to stay in Detroit was he didn't want to relocate his family for the sake of just playing one more season.

"That was the nice thing about it, when I came to the decision to sign the two-way," Maltby said. "It is a bit of a hassle, especially in the winter, to drive a couple of hours to be able to come home and see the kids and family. It's better than being out in Manitoba or something like that."

Maltby, who had four goals and two assists in 52 games last season, has played in more than 1,000 games in a Red Wings sweater.

Oh brother

Valtteri Filppula was finally reunited with his older brother, Ilari, on the ice.

Ilari, who's three years older than his brother, took part in the Wings' informal skate for the first time yesterday.

"I feel honored to be able to try out for this team," said Ilari, who arrived in Detroit on Monday.

Ilari's path to Detroit was aided by the coordinator for the team he played for in Finland, who also has ties with the Wings.

"That had something to do with it," Ilari said. "Everything is really new, but I'm really excited.

"(The) NHL has been my goal ever since I started playing hockey," Ilari added. "I think the timing was right."

Ilari finished with 12 goals and 37 assists in 58 games while playing for TPS. In 15 playoff games last season he had two goals and 12 assists and was awarded the Jari Kurri Award as the Finnish Elite League's playoff MVP.

The Wings signed him this summer to a one-year, two-way contract. He'll make $500,000 if he makes the team out of camp or $105,000 if he's sent to Grand Rapids.

"I'm prepared (to go to Grand Rapids)," Ilari said. "Whatever team I'm on I will play hard and help the team as well as I can."

Ilari, who has played at center for most of his career, knows one thing both he and his brother must do ... shoot more.

"I don't know it's something in your head, I don't know why, but it's the same thing with both of us," said Ilari, who feels Valtteri is a better skater. "We just have to shoot more."

Valtteri has done all he can to get his older brother prepared for anything.

"It's a really tough team to crack into," Valtteri said. "Hopefully everything goes well and we can play together. We may have to wait for that. I know he's really happy."

This and that

Four players have yet to make their appearance on the ice during the first five days of informal skating at the JLA - Mike Modano, Jiri Hudler, Brad Stuart and Ruslan Salei. Modano is expected to join the squad today. ... Defenseman Andreas Lilja continues to skate with his former teammates. ... Kris Draper ran the first part of the skate yesterday, putting the team through skating drills, before goalie coach Jim Bedard took over.